An interdisciplinary conference on Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS) will take place in Leuven, Belgium, on the 27th and 28th of October 2026. The conference will provide a space for researchers and experts to reflect on the changing role of VSS, with particular attention to new challenges, adaptation and future pathways. The conference comes at a time when the global sustainability governance landscape is evolving rapidly. Recent UNFSS discussions have highlighted how voluntary sustainability standards (VSS) are increasingly interacting with new regulatory
April 20, 2026
UNFSS Welcomes New Members, Strengthening Global Expertise on Sustainable Standards The United Nations Forum on Sustainability Standards (UNFSS) has expanded its global network with the addition of new institutional and academic members, reinforcing its role as a leading intergovernmental platform on Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS). The latest developments include the accession of the International Labour Organization (ILO) to the UNFSS Steering Committee and the appointment of new experts to its Academic Advisory Council (AAC). ILO Joins UNFSS Steering Committee, Reinforcing Social Sustainability The
May 19, 2025
This article builds upon the discussions that were held at the UNFSS Academic Advisory Council meeting 2025, 31st March and 1st of April 2025, at the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) . The global sustainability governance landscape is rapidly transforming. A new global order is emerging, more fragmented in nature and shaped by regulatory approaches. New due diligence now requires businesses to ensure their supply chains do not harm people or the planet. These laws require companies to
July 6, 2020
Can academic professionals contribute to society outside the classrooms? One of the ways to heighten political dialogue exchanges on the growing array of global challenges including global warming, resource depletion and social inequality is to bring together policy makers and academic experts from different disciplines and perspectives. In this way, knowledge can be co-created to pursue global public goods such as sustainable development.
February 10, 2020
Reflecting to the UNFSS research element cornerstone, the Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS) Academic Advisory Council (AAC) (hereinafter “AAC”), composed of renowned academic experts from across the globe, has been established to function as a think-tank that brings together a wide variety of academic backgrounds, ranging from public international law, global governance, international political economy, economics and public management, to human rights and sustainability studies. This type of multidisciplinary approach not only reflects the implicit acknowledgement of the
